NBA Daily Fantasy Helper: Tuesday 2/23/16

Anthony Davis is coming off of a historic outing against the Pistons. Can he follow it up with another big game tonight in Washington?

If you've never played daily fantasy basketball before, it's time to start. Unlike traditional leagues, you're able to select the players you want on that specific day only, giving you a different squad to root for each and every NBA night.

Today's lineups can be found here. The information below is to help you understand why particular players are being picked, because we don't want you going into the night completely blind. We want to help you. Keep in mind, however, that things often change up until tip-off, so make sure you're refreshing the optimal lineups as close to the start of games as possible.

Oh, and if you're interested, check out our daily fantasy basketball heat chart for today's slate. It's full of information like tonight's Vegas lines, team offensive and defensive efficiency ratings, pace, fantasy points against and so much more.

As for today's picks -- let's get to it.

The Best of the Best

DeMarcus Cousins (FD: 10,900, DK: $11,200) - After amassing 31.5 points, 12.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists during the month of January, Cousins has followed that up with 27.3 points, 11.3 boards and 5 dimes per game in February. He currently leads the league with a 35.4% Usage Rate and should see another massive workload tonight against a Nuggets' interior defense that has allowed the ninth most fantasy points per game to opposing centers this season.

Anthony Davis (FD: 10,300, DK: $10,200) - The Wizards are always a great defense to target in daily fantasy considering they have allowed the sixth most points per game in the NBA (104.9) and play at the fifth fastest pace in the league. This bodes extremely well for Davis, who's coming off of a historic 59-point, 20-rebound, 4-assist performance against the Pistons on Sunday and should have little trouble putting up big numbers once again tonight in a game that features an over/under of 215.

Damian Lillard (FD: 9,500, DK: $9,600) - Lillard comes into tonight as hot as any player in the league, averaging 36.3 points, 6.5 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game over his last four outings, including a 51-point, 7-assist gem against the defending champs on Friday. He should be in prime position to record his fifth consecutive 30-plus point game in a matchup against a Nets' defense that ranks 27th in the NBA in Defensive Efficiency according to our metrics, having given up the fifth most fantasy points per game to opposing point guards on the year.

Top Mid-Range Values

Nikola Vucevic (FD: $8,300, DK: $7,400) - In five games that Vucevic has played without Tobias Harris this season, he has averaged 22 points, 12 rebounds and 3.2 assists with a 27.4% Usage Rate in 37.2 minutes per game. He gets the pleasure of facing off against a 76ers squad that has allowed the most fantasy points per game to opposing centers and should remain the focal point of the Magic offense for the foreseeable future.

Thaddeus Young (FD: $6,900, DK: $6,800) - Young has seen a significant boost in playing time as of late, playing at least 35 minutes in six of his last seven games and averaging 15.6 points, 10.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game over that span. He should see all the minutes he can handle tonight against a Portland defense that ranks 21st in the league in terms of fantasy points per game to opposing power forwards.

Ishmael Smith (FD: $6,500, DK: $6,900) - In the 23 games since his return to Philadelphia, Smith has averaged 14.6 points, 7.6 assists, 3.1 rebounds and 1.5 steals in 31 minutes per game. With a matchup against a Magic defense that has struggled to defend the point guard all season long, Smith makes a great play at less than $7,000 on both FanDuel and DraftKings.

Basement Ballers

Gary Harris (FD: $4,700, DK: $4,700) - The Kings have been abysmal on the defensive end this season, ranking 22nd in the league in Defensive Rating while allowing the most points per game (109.1) and playing at the fastest pace in the league. They have also given up the most fantasy points per game to opposing shooting guards on the year. Harris has averaged 36.3 minutes per game in the month of February and should see minutes in the mid-to-upper-30s once again in the best matchup on the board at the position.

Donald Sloan (FD: $4,500, DK: $4,400) - Sloan's minutes have been somewhat inconsistent since Jarrett Jack was lost for the season, but he's seen at least 30 minutes in each of his last two games and has vastly outplayed his backup Shane Larkin. He gets a plus matchup against Portland tonight, and should continue to see close to 30 minutes and can be had for a very reasonable price across the industry.

Shelvin Mack (FD: $3,700, DK: $3,600) - In his Jazz debut, Mack dropped 16 points with 6 assists, 3 rebounds and a block in 24 minutes of action. He should see a similar workload tonight in a dream matchup against the defensively-challenged Rockets and still costs less than $4,000 on both Fanduel and DraftKings. Mack is rated as our best value on the board tonight by a wide margin.